To Min Congda's expectation, the Hornets really got into trouble in this game and started a big battle with the Clippers.
It may be that Min Chongda's motivation at the dinner table at noon had a certain effect. The Hornets took the advantage at the beginning, and Baron Davis succeeded in consecutive attacks.
Pau Gasol also succeeded in consecutive singles, helping the Hornets take the lead at the beginning.
The Clippers have become accustomed to falling behind in the first quarter.
After some debugging, many players compared the players who were in the best shape tonight: Harden!
Harden has been in the doldrums for several games before, always weakening when his opponents target him.
Because the Clippers have so many players who can score, once Harden is not in very good shape, he starts passing and organizing instead of shooting.
This season, Harden averaged 16.7 points per game, which is not a lot, but Harden often has games where he scores 4 or 5 points and 7 or 8 assists.
Correspondingly, in some games, if Harden feels good offensively, his scoring will be very high.
For example, against the Suns, he scored 43 points in a single game, the highest number in a single game in his career.
And whenever Harden scores high points in a game, his efficiency must be very high.
Because the starting efficiency is not good, Harden will switch to support this game.
Tonight, there was a big beard vs. a big beard in the backcourt. Harden did not give in. He even made sudden throws and free throws in the first quarter and scored 12 points.
So the Clippers entered Harden mode in this game. Harden controlled the offense, and Curry was willing to move and not have the ball to assist Harden.
When Harden is attacking with the ball, Gasol will appear in the high post much less often, but will sink more into the low post, forming a double low post layout with Randolph to attack the Hornets' inside line.
The only one the Hornets can really beat inside is Gasol, but Gasol is really a bit suppressed when facing Gasol.
Gasol suppressed his younger brother in the first quarter and hit every hook accurately, scoring 10 points in the first quarter.
The Hornets and Clippers tied at 30:30.
The Clippers were obviously not as well prepared as they were against the Thunder when facing the Hornets.
After all, it’s impossible to go all out in every game during the regular season.
There are always some games where you will play more casually when facing weaker teams.
Leave the game to the players to play freely and take control of the game.
The Hornets, who are sitting at home, will naturally not let the victory slip away from them.
You can lose in the away game, but you still have to fight hard at home.
In the first half, the two sides were inextricably tied. The Clippers were 58:61, still 3 points behind the Hornets.
In the third quarter, the Hornets surprisingly continued to play back and forth with the Clippers.
The key is that Gasol completely suppressed his younger brother Gasol.
Gasol is more experienced and his touch was excellent tonight.
The Clippers did not defend Gasol from start to finish.
Tyronn Lue said to Kawhi during the timeout: "Get your brother."
This is what Gasol should do, and it is what he has been pursuing since he was a child, surpassing the benchmark in front of him.
In the third quarter, the Clippers trailed the Hornets by 2 points, 78:80.
The Clippers only scored 20 points in the third quarter, and Harden scored 15 points alone.
This game didn't look like the Clippers' style.
But when the game entered the fourth quarter, the situation on the court suddenly changed.
At the beginning of the fourth quarter, the Clippers, led by Harden, launched a 12-0 offensive climax.
The score difference between the two sides was instantly opened to 10 points, the counterattack was completed, and the entire Hornets' efforts were wiped out in one wave.
The Clippers suddenly showed a strong scoring explosion, and no one in the Hornets could stand up and respond.
Gasol plays steadily enough, allowing him to explode and score consecutively, which is not what he is good at.
And Baron Davis no longer has the superior scoring explosiveness to support the team.
In the first three quarters, he was able to rely on experience to gain points, use smart methods to help the team attack, and slowly play against the Clippers at a slower pace, holding on to the score and even taking advantage.
But in the fourth quarter, the Clippers suddenly used a small lineup of Harden, Curry, Gasol, George and Jeremy Lin to start a crazy offensive mode. The Hornets suddenly couldn't stand it and collapsed.
The Clippers' current first-year and fourth-year players are becoming more and more proficient, and Gasol finally turned around in this quarter.
He made a series of wonderful passes on offense and withstood his brother's pressure on defense, helping the Clippers to penetrate the Hornets in one wave.
Min Congda shook his head when he saw the Clippers' attack. The Hornets really couldn't defend it.
With one big and four small like this, the opponent must have a very targeted small lineup to deal with it.
In the current league, small lineups are a trend, but they have not yet become fully popular.
Most teams are far from adequate in both personnel and tactical reserves.
The Clippers are different. Starting from the Dunleavy era, such lineup experiments have been carried out for at least two seasons.
Now it's time to blossom and bear fruit, and Steve Kerr is becoming more and more proficient in training the seniors and juniors.
The pass and cut combined with the high pick-and-roll in the middle are simply invincible in the offense and extremely difficult to defend.
"This kind of big one and four small ones, a lot of running, screening, passing and cutting, the ball moves extremely fast, and opportunities will arise at any time during the movement. After two seasons of running in, these guys have used this set of I'm getting more and more proficient. If I want to crack... I think the best way is to make a lot of defensive changes, and change every pick-and-roll screen to buy time, plug all the loopholes and gaps, and force these dogs. singles……"
Min Congda racked his brains for a long time and believed that the best defense against the Clippers' one and four small offenses was to make a large number of defense changes.
"It's best if the front and backcourts are all good, forward players who can play both inside and outside, so... Damn it! There are forward players who can play both inside and outside, these... aren't all of these people here? Are you on my team?"
Min Congda suddenly discovered that the selection strategy he formulated three years ago seemed to be focused on functional strikers.
In fact, he did the same thing. Leonard, George, and Butler are the products of this strategy.
As a result, this group of people was able to target the Clippers' increasingly aggressive passing and cutting offense.
"Am I targeting myself?"
Min Congda suddenly realized that many of the things he did were aimed at himself.
This made Min Congda feel shocked. How could this happen?
It can only be said that when Min Congda made this strategy, the alliance was not what it is now.
In just three years, the NBA game is developing in a completely different direction than in the past.
With the rise of a group of super small forwards such as Durant and James, shooting guards represented by Kobe Bryant have gradually faded out of the top ranks, and the role of the third position on the court will become more and more prominent.
The era of super shooting guards that started with Michael Jordan is transitioning to the era of top small forwards + super point guards.
Under this situation, a high-quality third position that is both inside and outside will become even more important. The Clippers have unknowingly collected the best potential small forwards in the league.
The game quickly lost its suspense. The Clippers played with the Hornets for three quarters, and finally took the Hornets away with their final effort.
After losing this game, the New Orleans Hornets ranked second to last in the Western Conference and are likely to get a high pick in the 2012 draft.
Min Congda was very panicked. He thought to himself: "No, facts have proven that any operation or decision I make in basketball will have the opposite effect in the end! Therefore, when this season is over, I will no longer interfere with the team's draft affairs. Let the team go on like this!”
"I should still put all my energy into investment matters and hurry up on the arena construction. Let's go directly to Charlotte tomorrow and talk about the boss first. Damn, this operation is really troublesome. , Fortunately, I have great hands and eyes, so there is nothing impossible in this world!”
After thinking about this battle, Min Congda decided not to interfere in the team's basketball affairs, especially the draft!
Starting from Curry, there are too many pitfalls. If I had known this, why did I do it in the first place?
Looking through the Clippers' draft history, it is obvious that it is a history of blood and tears.
Just let the Clippers' draft team fiddle around on their own.
Why bother to take action personally? As luck would have it, the people chosen were pretty good.
On the contrary, when it comes to investment, Min Congda feels that it is becoming more and more interesting.
As the new arena plan gradually takes shape, the blueprint for bankruptcy becomes clearer.
The top priority is that Min Congda must first vacate the cage for the Clippers and occupy the magpie's nest.
Once the Clippers complete the change of hands and obtain the support of the league president, chaebols, and syndicates, they will be able to start the road to major infrastructure construction.
In the next three years or so, the new arena will consume a lot of money and resources from the team, and overspending is inevitable.
Then, the Clippers will face huge pressure to renew their contract in the next few years.
Curry's contract, Harden's contract, George's contract, one after another.
Min Congda will sign all of these people if they don't fall through, and the luxury tax will definitely explode by then.
With high loans on one side and ultra-high salaries and luxury taxes on the other, the Clippers will face extremely huge cash flow pressure.
As long as there is a small financial problem, the Clippers may face bankruptcy.
If there is any further external turmoil, the team will die faster.
There are countless such examples in the business world, and how many companies suffer from debt and cash flow.
In Min Congda's view, although this plan is a bit complicated, it depends on human effort!
The first step is to talk to the potential new owner to convince him to invest in the Clippers and bring Min Congda on board.
From Min Congda's perspective, Sterling is a good boss, a complete puppet, and absolutely obedient.
At least until now, Min Congda has not been held back, and Min Congda has been making money for him.
If there's anything wrong with Sterling, it's that he's too obedient and is no longer the stingy boss who was able to wreak havoc.
There is no way, it is affected by the system, and it is completely governed by inaction.
The result is that when Min Congda needs his boss to stand up and help him, Sterling will not cooperate.
It is impossible for Sterling to sell shares to Min Congda and make him a shareholder. The system is very stuck.
However, if you change the boss, the system clearly states that [you can buy shares].
This is also what attracts Min Congda. By joining the stock market, he has completed a class leap.
From the working class to the evil capitalist class!
Of course, he can only be a small boss, so the big boss is very important.
Ballmer has too much money, so it would be too difficult for him to go bankrupt.
Schultz, who is proficient in sports industry management, can't do it either. If the market value of the Clippers can be easily increased by then, he will still be bankrupt.
It has to be the kind of person who has enough money but not enough money, is good at it and loves to play, and can’t achieve anything famous in the end.
And such an injustice is none other than the strongest player in basketball history, the undisputed number one, Michael Jordan!
To say that Jordan is a bad boss, Min Congda knew it not long after he entered the league.
Later, I learned more about his various deeds during his time as a prodigy, and I thought that God is indeed fair.
Jordan opened a door full of traffic on the basketball court, and then all the windows in the house were welded shut.
In the draft, Kwame Brown was selected as the number one pick. Later, Jordan came back as a player and sold his shares in the Wizards. When he wanted to buy it back, the Wizards owner changed his mind.
So, Jordan bought the Charlotte Bobcats instead.
But the Bobcats really don't see much of a future as a team.
If you want market, there will be no market; if you want record, there will be no record.
The Bobcats joined the NBA expansion team in 2004, and their influence is far inferior to that of younger teams such as the Heat, Timberwolves, Magic, and Grizzlies, let alone those veteran teams.
They have made it to the playoffs once in these years, represented by Gerald Wallace.
All aspects of the team are unattractive, but the name of owner Jordan is the loudest.
Everyone cares about the team owner more than the team itself.
Every time the Bobcats team performs poorly, fans joke, "It's better to let the boss come in."
Of course Jordan is determined to lead the team back to the top of the NBA. After all, he is a very competitive person.
Unfortunately, the management of the team is completely different from the games on the court. Jordan has never started and seems to have no talent at all in running the team.
This made Min Congda very satisfied.
The god of basketball, not the god of business.
Especially his drafting skills made Min Congda very envious.
How on earth can you do it, choose one over the other?
Why can't I? Why do I always see the right person?
God is so unfair.
So, after the game, the Clippers team took a plane back to Los Angeles.
Min Congda and Ada boarded the flight to Charlotte.
Silva has made an appointment for Min Congda, and he will have a relatively secret meeting with Jordan.
On the plane, Min Congda asked Ada: "Ada, how is your father now? Has he recovered from his injury?"
Ada nodded and said: "He is much better now. Thank you Mr. Smart, thank you very much."
Min Congda said: "Just verbal gratitude is not enough. Are you right, Ada?"
When Ada heard what Min Congda said, her face suddenly turned red, her eyes flickered a little, she bit her lip and said, "Then... tell me, how can I thank you?"
The plane was already in the air, the cabin lights were turned off, and the two of them were sitting in a small first-class compartment, covered by a curtain.
Min Congda couldn't see clearly the expression on Ada's face, and Ada's heart suddenly started pounding, and many pictures that shouldn't appear suddenly appeared in her mind.
For example, those small movies with airplanes as the background and flight attendants and guests as the characters can be acted by two or three people.
It seems that there are some interesting things that can be done in this small cubicle covered by a curtain.
"Well, when we get back to Los Angeles, let him treat me to a meal. I may have something to ask him for, so I'm sorry to bother you."
Min Congda's words suddenly poured a bucket of cold water on Ada's head.
"Ah...oh, oh, okay, okay, I know, I will tell him, I'm sorry...No, thank you...Hey..."
"Why do you say sorry and thank you properly? You fool, just have a good sleep."
Some people died, but not completely...
